~ Exploring our Catholic family history

Category Archives: Europe

The people of Ireland have long been proud of their Catholic heritage. Their beloved St. Patrick, whose feast day we celebrate this week, brought Christianity to the pagan peoples of his adopted homeland. Ireland has never looked back. In honor of St. Patrick and the Catholic faith of many of the Irish people, The Catholic Gene focuses today on searching for ancestors in Irish Catholic records.

Irish genealogy can be a difficult task to begin – particularly for those whose ancestors emigrated generations back. The first step in the process is to work with all available records for all known ancestors (and their family members) in your own country. Before you can even begin to do research in Ireland, you have to be able to focus in on the town and/or townland from which your ancestors hailed. For many of us, that location can take years to discover. Once you do make that breakthrough, however, there are a number of strategies for beginning a successful search for ancestors using Irish records.

The records of Ireland’s Roman Catholic churches can be the best starting point and can play an important role in that search. Many a beginner seeking their Irish family tree has been disheartened by the news of the 1922 fire which destroyed all of the civil records (administrative, court and probate) that had been collected nationwide and stored at the Public Record Office of Ireland (some dating back to the 13th century). Thankfully, in the majority of cases, Roman Catholic registers were kept in individual parishes and did not suffer a catastrophic loss similar to the loss of civil records. They are, therefore, a much more comprehensive resource for the genealogist researching in Ireland.

Before civil registration extended to all of the country in 1864, church records were the only registries to record family information. Although the Church of Ireland had a presence in the country, the majority of the people were Roman Catholic, and those Church records are important to many in their search for Irish roots. Throughout the 16th to 19th centuries, the Roman Catholic Church faced severe persecution by the state, and accurate record-keeping was not always in the best interests of the Catholic faithful. It is difficult, therefore, to find Catholic parish registers dated earlier than the 1820s. However, records can be found as far back as the 1680s in urban areas and in anglicized regions in the eastern half of Ireland, though they are rare.

Old Irish gravestones in Drumragh Graveyard

Irish Roman Catholic records with genealogical interest come in both the Latin and English languages (very rarely Irish) and are primarily limited to baptismal and marriage records. Unfortunately, burial registers for Roman Catholics are difficult to come by, and those that do exist are typically found in the northern half of the country. An interesting sidenote regarding burials in Ireland: Irish gravestones today represent only 1% of the population, so don’t count on finding too many ancestors’ gravestones in a local Catholic cemetery.

If you can’t wait for the big online reveal by the National Library of Ireland, and also can’t make the trip in the mean time over to the National Library of Ireland yourself, try searching the LDS Family History Library Catalog. Approximately 30% of the Irish Roman Catholic Church registers have been microfilmed by the LDS – maybe you’ll find that your ancestors’ parish is within that group.

Another great resource for Irish Catholic records is the strong network of heritage centers located in each county of Ireland. Visit the Irish Family History Foundation’s Roots Ireland website for information about county heritage centers throughout the island. The site features a map indicating each heritage center by county with links to a searchable index for each heritage center with an online presence (which is most of them).

An Irish Genealogical Researcher’s Pot of Gold

The Irish diaspora throughout the world continues to keep alive a worldwide interest in Irish culture and genealogy. Thanks to strong loyalty to their ancestral land, there is a wealth of resources available to those researching their roots in the Emerald Isle.

Article 2 of the Irish constitution states: “The Irish nation cherishes its special affinity with people of Irish ancestry living abroad who share its cultural identity and heritage.” On this St. Patrick’s Day, as you wear your green and take pride in your family’s ties to Ireland, The Catholic Gene – and this half-Irish author – wish you the luck of the Irish upon your genealogical search.

Most of this article was previously published here at The Catholic Gene. It has been updated to reflect new available resources for Irish genealogy.

There have been Italians within the confines of the United Kingdom since Roman times, however modern immigration began with churchman, academics, artists, merchants and aristocrats from around the 13th Century. This gave way to an influx in the 19th Century with the vast majority coming from villages in the North of Italy, usually as seasonal workers who had walked across France to the French ports.

During the period of 1820 – 1850 there were approximately 4,000 Italians living in England with around half of them living in London and hailing from the Como and Lucca region’s. By the 1870s this had grown to include the regions around Parma and Liri.

Many of these migrants who came for seasonal work remained beyond the season, often marrying local women or bringing their families with them.

The London epicentre of the Italian community was known then, as now as Little Italy and is located in Clerkenwell. Across many Victorian writings there are descriptions of the cramped and poor conditions which the Italians shared with the Irish population and the English poor. The hope always being that families saved enough money to improve their living conditions, often the reality was very different.

Some of the Italian population spread across the North of England into Scotland and to Wales, although not in huge numbers. The majority remaining in London. By 1891 the Census indicates that the majority of those in London worked as street sellers and organ grinders. The Italian population in Manchester indicates that many were involved with modeling, plastering and tile makers. In Yorkshire many were involved in the cutlery industry especially around the Sheffield area. In contrast, those in Wales were involved with shipping, either working in industries that serviced shipping or as seaman on board British ships. Others worked in the coal industry, for which Wales is famous.

From the 1861 Census in Scotland we can determine that there was only 118 Italians in the region, by 1901 this had grown to a substantial 4,050. These Italian communities were becoming economically stronger often running food or ice cream venues and in some cases moving from the Cities to smaller towns.

The First World War reduced the Italian migration substantially and it remained fairly low until after the Second World War when we see a rise in Italians coming to the United Kingdom.

Some Italians came to the United Kingdom as Prisoners of War and after the war ended remained here, taking an English wife and building a new life. This then lends the way to the post war boom of immigration which often joined the earlier established Italian communities.

Furthermore, from the 1950s there was an influx from the Southern towns of Italy and Sicily. Those regions were often poor with limited work, therefore they travelled to the United Kingdom and became part of a workforce to rebuild Britain after the war. The most noticed communities are in Woking, Bedford, Nottingham and in Cambridgeshire.

Regardless of when those Italian migrants arrived they came bringing with them moments from home, recipes, traditions, language and of course their religion. They say that the Church is often at the heart of the community, and that is especially the case with the Italian population. We shall see over the rest of this 4-part series about the Italian Churches that formed as part of the wider Catholic community.

“His Wife, His Horse…and His Ever Faithful Dog”

William Mattingly, founder of Mattingly Settlement, Ohio

It was 200 years ago that William Mattingly, his wife Sarah (“Sally”), and his faithful dog Schneider left their home in western Maryland and headed out into what was then the wild west: modern day Ohio.

Only thirty years before, the Declaration of Independence had made history. Ten short years before William’s departure, Lewis and Clark had made their famed expedition across the new nation.

…[William] started out into the wild west to make his fortune. The entire make-up of his caravan consisted of himself, his wife, his horse, his trusty rifle and his ever faithful dog, Schneider. He set out on the old trail leading to Pittsburgh, thence westerly to the Ohio River. Here, with the assistance of some friendly Indians he was ferried across at what is now called Bridgeport, Ohio.

William eventually settled in Muskingum County, Ohio, giving his name to what would become known as Mattingly Settlement. He was joined by other family members from Maryland who hoped to find the same success in farming there that William had found.

From England to America: A Legacy of Catholic Faith

The Mattingly family had a strong Catholic identity that had its roots in many generations of faithful ancestors before them. Thomas Mattingly and his family were the first of their clan to arrive in America (around 1664). They had left their home in Mattingley, England in search of freedom to practice their Catholic faith.

Mattingley Church and its churchyard in Mattingley, England – the family’s original surname had the -ley ending (Photo thanks to James Sills)

Ohio: Missionary Territory to Church Community

The faith of their forebears was important to the descendants of those early Mattinglys. They had moved their families across the Atlantic and then across the colonies in search of religious freedom. William Mattingly was no exception. Yet after his move to Ohio, it would be four decades before he and his family had the convenience of living close to a Catholic church. For the first seven of those forty years, the family had no opportunity to receive the sacraments. It was only when missionary priests began to visit the area that their three eldest children were able to be baptized.

By 1820, the Catholic families in the area were able to gather regularly for Mass, although getting there was quite a journey. According to Rev. Julius Mattingly, William “was a devout Catholic, never missing Mass on Sundays, making the trip to Zanesville (10 miles distant) every Sunday”. When in the 1840s the church in Zanesville needed expansion and the project ran low on funds, it was William Mattingly who put up $3,000 to furnish the interior of the church. (This amount is equivalent to at least $70,000 in today’s dollars.) William also donated $1,500 for a church bell a few years later.

In 1855 the Catholics of Mattingly Settlement in Muskingum township received the go-ahead from the Bishop to begin work on their own local church: St. Mary’s (Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary). The church was placed on William Mattingly’s plot of land (though officially donated by John Mattingly, who had purchased it the same day from William).

When not occupied on their farms, members of the congregation worked vigorously to build their church. Clay was removed from the field with which bricks were made. These bricks were fired just north of the church and the lime for the cement was made in the adjoining field.

When the exterior of their new church was finished in April 1857, the parishioners of St. Mary’s laid to rest their first member in the cemetery within its grounds. It was only fitting that this man was William Mattingly. He died at age 78, having lived to see the Catholic church of Mattingly Settlement almost to its completion.

Mattingly Settlement’s St. Mary’s Church and Cemetery are located in present-day Nashport, Ohio

St. Mary’s would serve William and Sally’s descendants and numerous other families who followed their lead, settling in Muskingum township and practicing the Catholic faith that so many generations of Mattinglys have so deeply treasured.

~

Congratulations to the Mattingly family descendants, who will celebrate the 200th anniversary of William’s settlement in Ohio at the 2012 Mattingly Family Reunion at St. Mary’s Church this weekend.

Mattingly Reunion at St. Mary’s Church, 1940

For more information about the history of Mattingly Settlement, St. Mary’s Church, or Mattingly family history, you might be interested in the following resources*:

Traditions and Genealogy of the Mattingly Family, 1633-1918 by Rev. Julius Mattingly (1918)

The Descendants of Henry Mattingly by Mgsr. Herman Mattingly (1969)

The Mattingly Family in Early America by Mgsr. Herman Mattingly (1975)

Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary 1856-1981, One Hundred Twenty-Five Years by Rev. H.E. Mattingly (1981)

The History of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary 1856-2006, One Hundred Fifty Years by Benjamin E. Factor and Patrick V. Smeltzer (2006)

Ohio has a strong history of Catholic faith tradition. In fact, just this summer one of its churches (c. 1823) was elevated by the Vatican to the level of Minor Basilica, one of just seventy-four in the United States. For more information about the newly renamed Basilica of St. John the Baptist in Canton, Ohio visit this article.

Today, Monday, April 23rd, is the feast of St. Wojciech/Adalbert, who is revered as one of Poland’s oldest saints and in fact one of the great patron saints of the Polish nation. He is a saint also of great importance to us, Polish-Americans of the Archdiocese of Detroit, because the very first Polish parish in the city of Detroit was placed from its very beginning under the protections and patronage of St. Wojciech. Wojciech was born of a noble family in Bohemia in 956, ten ears before Poland became a Christian nation with the baptism of King Mieszko the first bishop of Magdeburg. It should also be noted that Adalbert and Wojciech are two different names, not the Latin and Polish equivalents of the same name! The name Wojciech in Slavonic means “Help of the army.” The English name of Detroit’s first Polish parish “Albertus” was the name mistakenly given to the church at the time of its dedication. Albertus is the Latin form of Abert. This mistake was never corrected in the 117 year history of the parish, which closed in 1989.

As a child, Wojciech was consecrated to the Blessed Virgin by his parents who feared losing him to sickness. They promised the Virgin that Wojciech would live under her patronage with the clergy. Wojciech received an excellent education at the cathedral school of Magdeburg. In 982 he was ordained a subdeacon by the bishop of Prague. Though only 27 years of age, he was elected bishop of Prague in 983, after the sudden death of the previous bishop. Wojciech entered the city of Prague barefoot as a symbol of his humility. He was received with enthusiasm by Boleslaus II, prince of Bohemia, and all the people of that city. He proceeded to reorganize the diocese but was saddened to learn of the religious state of his flock. Most were Christian in name only. He withdrew to Rome in 990 but returned to Prague in 994 at the insistence of Pope John XV. Again he encountered difficulties and a refusal to accept the true gospel in Prague, which caused him to withdraw from Prague to Rome. Once again the Pope, Gregory V at this time, ordered him back to Prague.

The people of Prague, however, refused to admit Wojciech to the diocese and so he turned his attention to the conversion of Poland (Pomerania) to Christianity as a missionary. He made converts at Gdansk but later met with scorn as he and his companions were accused of being spies.

On April 23rd, 997, he and his companions were martyred near Krolewiec by being beaten to death with oars. After severing his head and fixing it on a pole which was carried throughout the village, his body was thrown into the Nogat River, a tributary of the Wistula, and washed up on the Polish coast. The body was held for ransom by heathens who received a small fortune, the weight of the body in gold, from Boleslaus, Duke of Poland, for its return. Later in 998 his body was enshrined in Gniezno; some of his relics, however, were returned by force to Prague in 1039. Adalbert was canonized a saint in the year 1000.

When St. Albertus parish was organized by the St. Stanislaus Kostka Society (a group of Polish immigrants attending the nearby German St. Joseph Church) they chose the Bohemian born St. Adalbert/Wojciech as their patron. The date of the meeting of organization of the new parish was April 23rd, 1870, the feast of St. Wojciech. He was a fitting choice for patron as many of the early parishioners of the Church had come from that area of Poland known as Pomerania and Poznania where St. Wojciech had ministered. They were known as Kaszubs and spoke a dialect of Polish heavily influenced by the German language.

Wojciech was the first great adopted patron of the Christian Polish nation. He had been venerated for over eight centuries as Protector of the Poles when he was selected to be the patron of Detroit’s first Polish parish which was primarily composed of Kaszubs.

When the first St. Albertus Church was dedicated on Sunday, July14th, 1872, the name of the patron was inadequately translated from the Latin Adalbertus to the English Albertus, thus forever identifying Detroit’s first Polish parish by the misnomer Albertus. Such is life! For better or worse, the Mother Church of the Detroit Polonia is known, at least in English, as St. Albertus.

My great grandparents, Szymon and Ludwika Lipa were members of St. Albertus parish in Detroit when they first immigrated to the U.S. Some of my grandaunts and uncles were baptized and buried from that parish as well.

Although I was never a member of that parish myself, I created a website for the parish and served as webmaster for several years.

I have numerous Granduncles and a couple grandfathers named for St Wojciech.

My mother, who always held her Polish heritage near and dear to her heart, died on this day in 2007.

I had intended to write about St. Wojciech in honor of his feast day today but when I read the very nice article Fr. Borkowski had written I knew I could do no better.

The people of Ireland have long been proud of their Catholic heritage. Their beloved St. Patrick, whose feast day we celebrate today, brought Christianity to the pagan peoples of his adopted homeland. Ireland has never looked back. In honor of St. Patrick and the Catholic faith of many of the Irish people, The Catholic Gene focuses today on searching for ancestors in Irish Catholic records.

Irish genealogy can be a difficult task to begin – particularly for those whose ancestors emigrated generations back. The first step in the process is to work with all available records for all known ancestors (and their family members) in your own country. Before you can even begin to do research in Ireland, you have to be able to focus in on the town and/or townland from which your ancestors hailed. For many of us, that location can take years to discover. Once you do make that breakthrough, however, there are a number of strategies for beginning a successful search for ancestors using Irish records.

The records of Ireland’s Roman Catholic churches can be the best starting point and can play an important role in that search. Many a beginner seeking their Irish family tree has been disheartened by the news of the 1922 fire which destroyed all of the civil records (administrative, court and probate) that had been collected nationwide and stored at the Public Record Office of Ireland (some dating back to the 13th century). Thankfully, in the majority of cases, Roman Catholic registers were kept in individual parishes and did not suffer a catastrophic loss similar to the loss of civil records. They are, therefore, a much more comprehensive resource for the genealogist researching in Ireland.

Before civil registration extended to all of the country in 1864, church records were the only registries to record family information. Although the Church of Ireland had a presence in the country, the majority of the people were Roman Catholic, and those Church records are important to many in their search for Irish roots. Throughout the 16th to 19th centuries, the Roman Catholic Church faced severe persecution by the state, and accurate record-keeping was not always in the best interests of the Catholic faithful. It is difficult, therefore, to find Catholic parish registers dated earlier than the 1820s. However, records can be found as far back as the 1680s in urban areas and in anglicized regions in the eastern half of Ireland, though they are rare.

Old Irish gravestones in Drumragh Graveyard

Irish Roman Catholic records with genealogical interest come in both the Latin and English languages (very rarely Irish) and are primarily limited to baptismal and marriage records. Unfortunately, burial registers for Roman Catholics are difficult to come by, and those that do exist are typically found in the northern half of the country. An interesting sidenote regarding burials in Ireland: Irish gravestones today represent only 1% of the population, so don’t count on finding too many ancestors’ gravestones in a local Catholic cemetery.

The good news is that not only do some of the local parishes allow access to their records, but the National Library of Ireland has copies of almost all of the surviving registers from Irish Catholic parishes throughout the island dated earlier than 1880. (The Public Records Office of Northern Ireland has microfilmed copies for Ulster Province and some other areas.) Even the records of the Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly (which were restricted from access to researchers for sixteen years) are now accessible to family historians.

If you cannot make the trip to the National Library of Ireland yourself, try searching the LDS Family History Library Catalog. Approximately 40% of the Irish Roman Catholic Church registers have been microfilmed by the LDS – maybe you’ll find that your ancestors’ parish is within that group.

Another great resource for Irish Catholic records is the strong network of heritage centers located in each county of Ireland. Visit the Irish Family History Foundation’s Roots Ireland website for information about county heritage centers throughout the island. The site features a map indicating each heritage center by county with links to a searchable index for each heritage center with an online presence (which is most of them). The first ten searches are free, but the website’s user account credit system charges a small fee for additional searches. There is an additional fee to access records.

An Irish Genealogical Researcher’s Pot of Gold

The Irish diaspora throughout the world continues to keep alive a worldwide interest in Irish culture and genealogy. Thanks to strong loyalty to their ancestral land, there is a wealth of resources available to those researching their roots in the Emerald Isle.

Article 2 of the Irish constitution states: “The Irish nation cherishes its special affinity with people of Irish ancestry living abroad who share its cultural identity and heritage.” On this St. Patrick’s Day, as you wear your green and take pride in your family’s ties to Ireland, The Catholic Gene – and this half-Irish author – wish you the luck of the Irish upon your genealogical search.

I started my research deep in a rural village in the depth of Surrey England. As my research evolved and I researched back through the generations exploring the lives of direct and indirect ancestors I stumbled into the surname of Bellasis.

The connection starts through the my 7 x Great Grandfather Henry Budd. Henry and his wife Martha nee Ottway raised a family of 8 in Puttenham from 1724. I can speculate on the birth place of Henry, as the neighbouring village of Shackleford as documentation in the village of Puttenham indicates “First of the Budd’s“, so I know he was not born there. There are some early records which indicate that a Henry Budd was resident in Shackleford and there is also references to Henry Budd in the neighbouring village of Elstead a few miles away. Certainly these villages were within walking distance of my 18th Century ancestors.

Henry and Matha raised their family of 7 children in a time, fairly reminiscent of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. I can almost hear and feel the panic as Henry and Martha realised that they need to marry off their daughters to Gentlemen of certain means.

Their eldest daughter, Ester married George Bridges Bellasis. I have written before about the antics of George during his time in the East India Company, (for that post click HERE). The Bellasis family were well established. As I researched further through the line of Bellasis I encountered the half brother of George, Edward Bellasis. George’s father had been a vicar and so I was very surprised to see that Edward converted to Catholicism in 1850. It was this angle and part of the family that posed the most research and questions, not only about the family, but about the religious aspects to it.

Edward Bellasis was born in 1800 to the Rev. George Bellasis and his second wife Leah Cooper Viall. Edward lead an interesting life, he was educated at Christ’s Hospital and undertook legal studies at the Inner Temple. He formed a legal practice at the Chancery Bar and retired from legal practice in 1867. He died in France in 1873.

He was received into the Roman Catholic Church by Father Brownhill on 27 January 1850 and soon after his wife and children followed. He was keen on all things Catholic and was fairly instrumental within the Roman Catholic community; including founding the School of Oratorians at Edgebaston. Edward married twice, but it the children of his second marriage to Eliza Garnett that takes us along a fascinating path.

Together, Edward and Eliza had 10 children. Two sons, the eldest and youngest became Priests and three of his daughters became Nuns.

I had barely interpreted the information of the conversion, when I was sent this photograph by a fellow researcher.

The photograph is of three of the daughters of Edward Bellasis, Monica, Mary and Cecelia Bellasis. Where would the research lead and how far could I research their lives as Nuns? Now, I was in uncharted waters in relation to my research skills.

The Catholic Family History Society holds an index of Nuns, who were in the English Province of their Order. The index itself reveals the date of birth for the Nun, names of parents, religious name, dates of profession, date and place of death and the name of order.

Here are the basic details contained within the index:

Monica Bellasis

Born 25th November 1855

Died 27th April 1927 St. Leonards

Entered into Convent 16th January 1879

Professed 16th January 1881

Religious Name – M.Edward All of the Sacred Heart Child Jesus

Cecilia Bellasis

Born 28th June 1845

Died 25 December 1930, Harrowgate.

Entered Convent 5th August 1869

Professed 8th September 1871

Religious Name – St. Aloyius

Mary Bellasis

Born 4th January 1842

Died 18th June 1927, Harrowgate

Entered into Convent 12th December 1863

Professed 18th November 1865

Religious Name – Francis Xavier

Just these few basic facts give me, in addition to the timeline of their existence a starting point as I try to piece together their lives within their Church and Faith.I think this is going to be an interesting journey………

Part of my childhood was spent in Germany. I went to a German school for part of that time and we had a German nanny. I was immersed in the culture and language at an early age. And Christmas in Germany became one of my favorite times and some of my best memories.

We celebrated every year Sankt Nikolaus Tag. On the night of December 5, we would place our shoes outside the door. If we had been good that year, Sankt Nikolaus would leave chocolates, fruit, and other goodies in our shoes. If we had been bad, then we would find wood switches in our shoes the next morning. This was the commencement of the Christmas season which would last until Epiphanie (January 6). As Donna Pointkouski has written here, celebrations of this sort are Catholic traditions in Germany, especially in the southern regions such as Bavaria.

The story of Saint Nicholas’s generosity was the certain precursor to the now secularized story of Santa Claus. But today, some German Catholics object to the blurring of the distinction between the holy saint and the jolly elf who slides down chimneys (whom they call “Weihnachtsmann” [“Christmas Man”]). They’re waging a campaign to maintain the dignity of the historical St Nicholas by declaring Weihnachtsmann-free zones. Even the German version of CYO (Catholic Youth Organization), the Bund der Deutschen Katholischen Jugend (BDKJ) supports the campaign in some areas. See the website Weihnachtsmann-freie Zone at http://www.weihnachtsmannfreie-zone.de/.

Another Catholic tradition that I first became familiar with in Germany is the Advent Calendar. This is a calendar for counting down the days of Advent until Christmas. Frequently, the calendar has little doors to open for each date. There may be a religious message or gift, or a small toy, piece fruit, or candy associated with each opened door. I looked forward to each Advent in Germany to get a new Advent Calendar.

Other countries have embraced the idea of the Advent Calender. American Catholics see the Advent calendar as a way to be reminded daily of the need to prepare for the greatest liturgical event of the year.

As it turns out, the Advent Calendar in reality is neither of Catholic origin nor “traditional” (at least not in German historical terms). The idea dates from about 1850 and originated among German Lutherans!

German Christmas carols, however, are firmly grounded in Catholic tradition. My favorite German carol is this one:

At the German school I attended, we learned that the words were written by an Austrian priest, Father Josef Mohr in 1816. In 1818, Father Mohr asked Franz Joseph Gruber to coompose a melody for the song. Tradition holds that Father Mohr asked Gruber to compose the music for guitar because the piano in his church was not functioning. Some historians today find this story apocryphal. Whatever its origins, it has become a Christmas tradition worldwide. An Episcopalian bishop, John Freeman Young, wrote the widely used English translation in 1859.

The first Christmas song I learned in Germany has also become a classic. The traditional version consists of a melody of an old German folk song and words composed by Ernst Gebhardt Anschutz (1780-1861). Here’s Nat King Cole’s popular rendition:

Saint Lucy was born about 283 AD in Syracuse, Sicily and died about 304 AD in the same area. The thing about saints born so long ago is that there weren’t many (if any) records kept to detail their lives and deaths. Often times their histories were told and retold orally many times before they were ever written down. Legends grew over time. There are several legends attributed to Saint Lucy, some may be based in truth, others may be nothing more than myths. It’s hard to say which are which.

Photo from Wikipedia

One legend says Lucy was betrothed against her will and vowed to remain a virgin as a pledge to her faith in Jesus Christ. Supposedly her betrothed didn’t like that idea and reported her (as a Christian) to the Roman authorities. The legend has it that her eyes were gouged out as punishment. Or she gouged them out herself and offered them to her captors. (There are different versions.) This legend was commonly believed and when she was the subject of artists in the 1500s she was depicted with her eyeballs on a plate. And for that reason and because her name means “light”, she is the patron saint of the blind and eye disorders.

The one thing that seems to be accepted as fact is that she was persecuted for her belief in Jesus Christ.

Photo from Wikipedia

There are St Lucy (Lucia) light festivals held in some Scandinavian countries. According to folk legend, December 13th follows the longest night of the year in Sweden. In celebration, school girls dress up in white robes with a candle-lit wreath on their heads. What a lovely sight that must be!

In Italy and Sicily, Saint Lucy is honored on December 13th with dinner feasts of pasta dishes and other Italian foods. Now that’s a grand idea, don’t you think? Perhaps you will honor Saint Lucy with pasta at dinner tonight!

My mother’s name was Lucy. Actually, she was baptized in the Catholic church as Lucja (Polish version of Lucy) and legally her name was Lucille. But everyone called her Lucy. I always wondered why she was given that name. She wasn’t named for anyone in the family. Nor for her Godmother. Nor for my grandmother’s best friend in America. The thought crossed my mind that she may have been named for St Lucy but I can’t find any information about the saint that would have my grandmother naming her daughter after her. And the timing wasn’t right for her to have been named for the saint simply because her birth was in close proximity to the feast day. The Feast of St Lucy is today, December 13th while my mother was born in July. Perhaps she was given the name simply because my grandmother or grandfather liked it. Back in 1918, when she was born, Lucille was the 29th most common name for baby girls.

While Christmas is joyfully celebrated by Christians of all varieties, the option of celebrating the weeks before the big holiday have only caught on with Protestants in the last few decades. I didn’t discover Advent until I was in college, and figured any religion that could make Christmas into a four week holiday (longer, if you count Epiphany!) was worth serious consideration.

Leave it to the Catholics to know how to plan a party. First, the colors change. The banners, altar cloths, and priests’ garb changes to violet, white, then gold. In fact, the Church declares that Advent, the season of anticipation, is the beginning of the Church year. Mass begins with the lighting of the Advent candle as a reminder of the new liturgical season, sort of like Black Friday kicking off the holiday shopping season.

When my sons were young we set up a small Advent wreath to light at home and a German Advent Calendar with little paper doors to open each day until December 25th. You never know what little things will lead to. . .

Twenty years later the four of us were in Germany for Christmas discovering yet another Advent tradition at the Weinachtsmarkt or Christkindlmarkt, a holiday street market with roots in the Middle Ages usually held in the marketplace or on the steps of the local church. The Dresden Weinachtsmarkt is credited as being the oldest market (from 1434), but Vienna claims its Bautzen market of 1294 was the forerunner.

At churches throughout Germany. Austria, and Alsace, the First Sunday Of Advent marks the opening of the Weinachtsmarkt, The Christmas version of our Southern California church fiesta.

We stumbled on our first Weinachtsmarkt somewhere off the autobahn from Munich to Freiberg after a mind-and -body- numbing nonstop flight from Los Angeles. We pulled off the highway in desperate search for a reststop and refreshment, and suddenly found ourselves in front of a Catholic church where the universal sounds of of hammers and electric drills filled the air. A closer look showed that wooden stalls were being assembled, grills heated, and gluwein set to simmer.

We were first to sample the hot mulled drink and sausages, warming our hands around the cups as we watched assorted animals being led into the square for the Nativity stall. Children helped throw the hay for bedding, and stroked the animals. In the short time we were there, stringed lights came to life, the sound of hammers gave way to singing, and more people filled the market.

In Freiburg im Breisgau where our son lived we discovered double Weinachtsmarkts. The large central fair on the Rathausplatz (town square), and a smaller one set up in front of a smaller church.

Of course, the main attraction at these events is the food — sizzling wursts in all varieties, steaming mugs of hot spiced Glüwein, stollen, candies, lebkuchen. Stalls offered assorted Bavarian Christmas wares for sale, from handmade wooden cheese boards to knit scarves, to carved wooden ornaments.

In Strasbourg, we found the Alsatian version held in the square outside the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourgwhere Croque Monsier and soft macaroons were the snacks of choice instead of the traditional Bavarian wurst und .

In anticipation of Advent, I am dusting off our home Advent wreath and setting up the little German calendar. The Glühwein is already steaming.

Traditional Glühwein (Glow Wine)

1 bottle nice full red wine

1 lemon

12 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

1/4 – 1/3 cup sugar

Pour the wine and sugar into a large saucepan and heat gently; do not boil. Cut the lemon in half and stick the cloves into one half. Thinly slice the other half. Add the lemon with cloves, and lemon slices, and cinnamon stick. Heat slowly until steaming hot. Traditionally served in glass mugs.

I come from a long line of Polish Catholics. I’ve long been interested in how my ancestors celebrated the various holidays, saint’s feast days, and other holy days. The Catholic Poles had many, many religious ceremonies and prayer services unheard of here in the United States or elsewhere in the world. Poland has long been a country that struggled for peace, was dominated and taken over by its neighbors, and suffered when those neighbors tried to extinguish its very culture. Through it all, the strong faith of the people of this predominantly Catholic country has prevailed. It’s enlightening to take a look at the religious rites that were and still are practiced in Poland, the land of my ancestors. Here is an example of a Polish Catholic prayer service for the Advent season.

A traditional Polish observance of the season of Advent differs greatly from the heavily commercialized time before Christmas in this country. It is a time of reflection and spiritual preparation for the coming of Christ at Christmas. The word advent comes from the Latin adventus which means the coming. We await the coming of the Messiah not only in the flesh but also for His second coming as Judge at the end of the world. Hope is the dominant characteristic of the season of Advent. There is a focus during the season on our longing for God’s grace and His friendship. It is understood that parties, weddings, and other boisterous events would be an obstacle to the search for God’s grace and building that friendship, and so they are avoided. Advent is also a time for reconciliation with God through the Sacrament of Penance.

Throughout advent many people in Poland participate in an early morning Mass called Roraty. It begins just before sunrise in almost complete darkness in the church. The name roraty comes from the ancient Latin chant that is sung to begin the service: Rorate Coeli, de super; et nubes pluant justum – O Heavens, drop down your dew from on high and may the Just One be rained by the clouds. The words of the ancient hymn are a plea for God’s gift of His Son. As the hymn is sung candles are gradually lit in the dark church. Roraty is a kind of daily Advent vigil ceremony. The people wait in darkness not only for the rising of the sun but ultimately for the return of the Son of God, so beautifully symbolized by dawn’s first light.

The roraty service has a definite Marian dimension to it as does the entire season of Advent. In the sanctuary is found one special candle that is more predominate than the others used in the ceremony. It is traditionally decorated with greenery and white ribbon in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who plays and important role in the raining down of the Just One.

The Advent roraty ceremony originated in the 13th century during the reign of King Boleslaw Wstydliwy (the Bashful) who was the husband of St Kinga. According to historical documents, a representative of every social state lit one candle of a specially prepared seven-branch candelabrum in the cathedral at the early morning service, starting with the king. As each man lit his candle he proclaimed: Paratus sum ad adventum Domini/Gotow jestem na pryjscie Pana – I am ready for the coming of the Lord! After the king lit his candle he was followed by the cardinal primate, then a senator, a nobleman, a knight, a townsman and finally the seventh candle was lit by a peasant farmer.

Preparation for the Lord’s coming, both interior and spiritual as well as exterior and temporal is an integral part of a truly Catholic observance of the holy season of Advent.